The present invention is particularly adapted for maintaining a constant power to an high pressure sodium vapor lamp, as shown in Osteen 4,137,484, with a power supply having an operating mode using a similar run mode concept as disclosed in Stuermer et al. 4,749,913 and will be described with respect thereto; however, the invention has much broader application and may be used to maintain a constant power to an electric discharge lamp for the purpose of maintaining a selected intensity with its related constant color temperature or it may be employed for the purpose of controlled dimming to a fixed, but adjustable, power level of a discharge lamp, such as fluorescent lamp having a resonant ballast circuit. Both of these environments, for which the invention is particularly applicable, require a power supply capable of producing a fixed, or constant, power applied across the discharge lamp so that the intensity of the lamp can be controlled. When dimming of the lamp is the objective of the control circuit, the power across the lamp must be adjustable over a relatively wide range while maintaining consistency, good power factor control and uniform lighting, even at low power settings. When a constant power is required, such as in a system for controlling the intensity of an high intensity discharge lamp, it is necessary that the applied power across the lamp remain constant as the lamp ages and as the line voltage fluctuates. Both of these objectives, i.e. a constant power and a fixed adjusted power, can be obtained by a power control system having the capabilities of maintaining a power at a preselected level irrespective of the changes in the operating parameters of the lamp circuit. Consequently, a relatively inexpensive power control circuit accomplishing these objectives has been sought in the lamp industry for some time.
To provide power control to a discharge lamp, it has been suggested that the actual lamp current could be sensed with a current transformer and a voltage signal proportional to the lamp current could be electrically summed with a voltage signal proportional to the desired constant power or adjusted dimming power so as to produce a feedback signal applied to the input of a voltage controlled oscillator so that the frequency of the oscillator will be changed to track the lamp current with the desired power. Such a feedback system does not accurately control lamp power. Instead, the lamp current is maintained constant and power fluctuates with the lamp voltage which could vary, appreciably between individual lamps and their related life. In this prior feedback system, lamp intensity is controlled by the lamp current; however, such a system is not wholly satisfactory since the lamp intensity is not proportional to the lamp current, but is proportional to the instantaneous lamp power. As can be seen, this suggested lamp current feedback approach for controlling the lamp intensity at a dimmed level, or constant level, will not accomplish the objective of maintaining a constant lamp power or constant lamp intensity with its related constant color temperature. As the lamp ages its operating voltage increases and the power applied to the lamp increases accordingly. Use of such a feedback system reduces the life of the lamp by causing the voltage across the lamp to increase as it ages.
Such current controlled feedback systems are generally economical; however, they do not produce accurate dimming when used for that purpose in a fluorescent lamp system. At low adjusted intensity levels, fluctuations in the power through the lamp can be sufficient to extinguish a fluorescent lamp. The same defifiency is found when driving an High Intensity Discharge (HID) lamp wherein the desired optimum power level, balancing light intensity and lamp life, cannot be accurately controlled by sensing lamp current and providing the feedback through a voltage control oscillator of a current mode control system.
Some of the difficulties experienced in prior efforts to control the power to discharge lamps by the lamp current as disclosed generally in Stuermer et al. 4,749,913 could be substantially improved by combining the lamp voltage and current to produce a signal having a level controlled by the instantaneous lamp power and then employing this power signal in a feedback loop for adjusting the power supply to maintain a constant lamp power. The disadvantage of this power feedback approach is that the cost of a power circuit at the lamp itself is extremely high and would contribute adversely to the cost of such a power feedback system.
In summary, the art of power supplies for discharge lamps has a need for a system that can deliver to an HID lamp a constant power to provide a constant color temperature in spite of variations in lamp voltage. In addition, if such a system could also be adjustable to provide for dimming of a lamp, such as a fluorescent lamp, it would be even more advantageous to this field.